By Pete Cava
PBR Indiana Correspondent

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1^st GAME – KNIGHTSTOWN 3, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 0:  Spencer Mattix pitched a four-hitter and Drake Peggs batted in three runs as the Panthers beat the Eagles in Saturday's first Class 2A regional contest at Park Tudor High School in Indianapolis.  

The game began under overcast skies, and rain halted play in the second inning with no score.  After a one-hour delay, Knightstown (21-8) broke through for a pair of runs. 

Max Rinehart led off the bottom of the third for the Panthers with a single and advanced on Jose Olivo's sacrifice. 

Senior right-hander Luke Webb, who started for Heritage Christian (14-9), fanned the next batter.  But Peggs, Knightstown's senior shortstop, drove a 1-0 fastball over the 315-foot sign in right field for a 2-0 Panthers advantage. 

The homer barely cleared the fence.  “Hey, it was enough,” Peggs said. “I wasn't sure (it would go out).  It was up there for a while.  I was just running the bases hard, no matter what.” 

Knightstown added a run in the fifth.  Olivo opened the frame with a base hit and stole second.  One out later, a base hit to left by Peggs brought in Olivo for a 3-0 Panthers lead. 

Mattix allowed a single to start the seventh and got the next batter on a force out at second base.  The game ended on a grounder to Peggs, who started a six-four-three double play. 

Peggs finished with two hits in three trips to the plate, while Mattix allowed one walk while striking out eight. 

2^nd GAME – CARDINAL RITTER 1, #2 ROCKVILLE 0:  Junior Blake Malatestinic, the hero in last weekend's sectionals for the Raiders, pitched a one-hitter in Saturday's second semifinal over the 2015 State Class A champion Rox. 

Malatestinic was the winning pitcher for the Cardinals (17-9) in all three contests in sectional play at Speedway High School. 

Saturday, he locked horns with Rockville senior Dalton Laney, an Indiana State recruit.  Laney was the winning pitcher for the Rox in last year's Class A title game against Shakamak at Victory Field. 

This was the first season in Class 2A for Rockville (27-4), ranked second in A/2A heading into this year's post-season play. 

“They're a quality team,” said Cardinal Ritter coach Dave Scott.  “Their pitcher is lights out. He's going to be really good at the next level, I can guarantee that. 

“We just were determined.  We went out there and we got a run when we needed it.” 

Malatestinic and Laney, both right-handers, traded blanks through the first four frames. 

Dillon Olejnik opened the top of the fifth for Cardinal Ritter with a base on balls.  Kyle Price pinch-ran for Olejnik and Luke Shearer, batting for Devin Hamann, laid down a bunt.  Roxville third baseman Kegan Wimsett, playing in, fielded the ball.  Wimsett slipped on the rain-soaked grass, and from a sitting position flipped the ball to Laney, who fired to first to get the out. 

Price went all the way to third on the play, and Rockville coach Bob Kyle ordered his infield in for a play at the plate.  Zack Wilbur sent a slow roller toward second on the wet turf.  It went for a base hit, and Price raced home with the game's only run. 

Malatestinic didn't allow a hit until the bottom of the fifth.  With two out Rockville's nine-hole hitter, Beau Buell, smashed a single up the middle that caromed off Malatestinic's glove for the Rox's lone safety. 

In the bottom of the sixth, Rockville had men on first and second with no out on a walk and an error.  Malatestinic retired the next three batters, then pitched a three-up, three-down seventh to send Cardinal Ritter to the regional championship game. 

“It felt pretty good,” said Malatestinic.  “I was coming off an injury, and I was finally able to get back in the middle of the season.” 

Malatestinic said his physical woes started last year while he was playing summer ball.  “It happened when I was sliding,” he explained. “I injured my back, and I didn't take care of it as well as I should have. 

“Due to overcompensation, I had a frayed labrum.  That was really scary.  After I came back, I came back hungry and I came ready to play.” 

“It's been great to see him come back strong,” said Coach Scott.  “He's battled injuries most of the year.  He's been our horse.  'Give me the ball, and I'll take care of the rest' – that's the way he's been all year, since he's been back.” 

Malatestinic, who beat Covenant Christian, Scecina and Speedway in sectional play, fanned five Rockville batters while giving up a pair of walks and hitting two men. 

Laney was equally impressive, striking out eight, scattering three hits with two walks and two hit batters. 

CHAMPIONSHIP – KNIGHTSTOWN 8, CARDINAL RITTER 4:  By the time the title game got underway, the rain had stopped, the sun was out, and Park Tudor’s grounds crew had the field in spectacular shape.  

Then the Panthers (21-8) drenched the Raiders’ hopes for a regional crown with seven runs over the first three frames.  

Knightstown went right to work, scoring a pair of first-inning runs off Luke Shearer, the sophomore right-hander who started for Cardinal Ritter (17-10).  Isaac McRoberts worked a two-out walk and Jake Bearhope followed with a double to left-center that scored courtesy runner Kaleb Buchanan.

After an infield error on Tyler Burton's grounder, the Panthers had runners at second and third.  When Burton took off for second, the throw got through to the outfield and Bearhope crossed the plate. 

Sophomore Kaunner Cleek started for Knightstown, and the right-hander surrendered an unearned run in Cardinal Ritter’s half of the first.  With one out, Jake Kluemper reached second base on an outfield error and then scored on Alex Vela’s base hit. 

In the top of the third, Knightstown sent 11 men to the plate and scored five times, aided by three Cardinal Ritter errors.  After Shearer failed to retire the first five Panther batters, senior righty Zack Wilbur came on in relief.  Wilbur gave up RBI singles to Spencer Mattix and Drake Peggs, and when the dust finally settled, Knightstown was up 7-1. 

The Raiders put three on the board in the bottom of the fifth.  With two out, Blake Malatestinic walked, Griffen Miller was hit by a pitch and Quentin Yockey drew a base on balls to fill the sacks.  

Dillon Olejnik then lifted a fly ball to right that looked like the third out.  But Knightstown’s right fielder lost the ball in the lights, and it fell for a hit as two runs scored.  When the throw home sailed into the bleachers to the left of home plate, another run came in.  

Burton moved from center field to the mound to get the final out. 

Knightstown scored again in the top of the sixth.  Burton led off with a single, took second on Logan Whitaker’s bunt sacrifice, moved to third on a wild pitch and waltzed home on Cleek’s base hit to left.  

Freshman Joey Gruber replaced Wilbur and got the final two outs for Cardinal Ritter.  

In the bottom of the seventh, Burton allowed a lead-off hit to Vela.  But the sophomore righty retired the next three batters to close out the game in two hours and three minutes. 

Peggs, the Eastern Michigan recruit, paced a 10-hit Panthers attack with a 3-for-4 performance, while Cleek went 2-for-4.  

“Peggs, he’s a machine,” said Knightstown skipper Daren Hardesty.  “When he’s on, I mean, he keeps us in the game.  He keeps us alive.  When he’s hot, I know we’re going to be okay.”     

Hardesty was also pleased with Cleek, who got the win, as well as Burton’s relief performance.  “We’ve put Cleek in some really tough scenarios all year,” he said.  “If you look at his losses, he’s got beat by some really good teams and a lot of times, we didn’t help him defensively.  We knew that if he came out and threw strikes, he could compete for us. 

“Tyler Burton hasn’t thrown in a while, so it helped having him come in like he did at the end of the game. We’re happy.  We’re very happy.” 

Vela and Olejnik had two hits apiece for Cardinal Ritter. 

Pete Cava is the author of Indiana-Born Major League Baseball Players:  A Biographical Dictionary, 1871-2014, now available from McFarland Publishers.